


You Need to Stop

by RebaK1tten



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alpha Derek Hale, Asexual Derek Hale, Background Derek/Chris, Derek and Peter friendship, Discussion of pack, Gen, Peter tries to be helpful, and Peter/Stiles, seriously that doesn't have a tag?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-07
Updated: 2017-12-07
Packaged: 2019-02-11 15:52:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12938601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RebaK1tten/pseuds/RebaK1tten
Summary: Peter goes to Derek's loft and they discuss ways Derek could be happier and be a better alpha.





	You Need to Stop

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a lot of dialogue that was stuck in my head. I'm not saying this is anyone's experience or would have a good result, but it's Peter, so grain of salt. 
> 
> And I like thinking they'd talk with each other and forgive each other and maybe even forgive themselves.

Derek would like to have a relationship with his uncle. He would like to actually _like_ his uncle. After all, there’s only three Hales left, and with Cora back in South America, it’s only Derek and Peter now.

But then Peter does things like come into his house and obviously and obnoxiously sniff the air, the way his mother said only new wolves or very rude people do.

“What is that smell, Derek? It’s Argent, isn’t it?” He walks into the living room and looks at the couch with a snarl and then stalks over to Derek. He’s always been able to look wolfish while human. “It’s Argent. The living room reeks of him and so do you.” Peter sniffs in his direction and tilts his head in consideration. “Yes, you smell like him, but not… like sex. You smell like you’ve been rolling around with him, but not having sex. Okay, what’s going on?”

“Gee, Peter, maybe it’s just my crazy thought that this isn’t any of your business,” Derek answers, turning away from him.

Peter raises an eyebrow and sighs. “Derek, please. Argent? Another Argent? I just want to be sure things are okay.”

“Things are fine, Peter,” Derek says, and sits on one of the stools at the breakfast bar. “Chris is a friend, he’s been over a few times watching movies or stuff. Sometimes we sit together on the couch.”

“Hmm. Erica and Boyd are friends and over at our house watching movies and I’m sure I don’t reek of them. We even hug and I don’t smell like them.” Peter passes him with another not-subtle sniff, then goes into the kitchen and gets a bottle of water out of the fridge.

“Erica and Boyd come to your house?” the alpha asks, grabbing the bottle of water before Peter can drink it. “Why do they come to your house?”

Peter shoots Derek a dirty look and goes back into the fridge. “I told you, we’re friends. It started with Stiles inviting them and now,” he shrugs, grinning. “Erica and I are very good friends and Boyd tolerates me.”

“That’s not bad for Boyd, it doesn’t come easy,” Derek says. He cocks his head and studies his uncle. “But I still don’t get why they come to you.”

“They come to us because we’re pack and they need pack, Derek.” He holds up his hands so Derek will let him continue to speak. “It’s not a criticism. Not exactly, but it’s a fact. We’re wolves, Derek, and we need pack and sometimes even touching.”

“Maybe I should do that,” Derek mumbles, more to himself than Peter. “With everyone?”

Peter relaxes with his back against the fridge and raises an eyebrow. “You could have over a couple until you get used to it – although no one would give you grief if you just tell people to come over and eat or watch a movie.”

“That wouldn’t be weird?”

“They’re your pack and they crave it. And it’s certainly no weirder than having Argent over here all the time. Be honest, Derek, what is going on with you and him? It’s not just the scent; Stiles’ father mentioned seeing you two out at a diner.”

Derek scowls and his scent goes sour. “We’re friends, like I said. Period.”

Peter opens his bottle and takes a sip of water, studying Derek. “I know it might be hard for you to believe, but I am asking because I want to help if I can. Believe it or not, my relationship with Stiles hasn’t always been smooth.”

“Really?” Derek says, raising an eyebrow. They’re a sarcastic family.

“Yes, it’s true. At one point he even threw a Molotov cocktail at me.” Peter grins and says, “We’re much better now. And of course he wasn’t the one who killed me, but that’s bygones, isn’t it?”

“Not making me feel like talking,” Derek answers.

“So you’re friends,” Peter starts, going ahead anyway. “Do you want it to be something more?”

Derek sighs, rubbing the back of his neck. “Chris is straight, Peter. He’s not attracted to men.”

“Okay. I’d tell you Stiles’ saying about gay is a six-pack away, but I think that’s a little tacky, and a little predatory, even for me. And you didn’t answer the question.” Peter watches Derek’s jaw clench and waits; he’s learned if you wait, Derek will eventually talk.

“No, I don’t want to have sex with him. I don’t… if I could, I wouldn’t have sex with anyone,” he says, glancing at Peter and quickly looking away.

“So don’t. If you don’t want to have sex, you don’t have to,” Peter answers, shrugging. It wouldn’t be the choice for himself, but that’s him.

Derek snorts, shaking his head. “You – you can’t do that. You have to, people expect you to. It’s normal to want sex with people.”

“It’s normal for people that it’s normal for.” Peter waits a second, considering this and says, “Have you always felt this way? With Jennifer or Braeden or…”

“It doesn’t matter, it’s what people expect. Relationships and just people, it’s always about sex,” he says and slumps in his seat, scent gone bitter.

“I’ve seen the way people look at you and heard some things they say. I know it annoys you, but is it more than that?”

Derek sits up and his eyes quickly flash. “More than what, being annoyed? Having people say really crude things when I’m trying to get milk and bread from the grocery store? I can’t even get my favorite coffee from Best Bean without one of the baristas hitting on me every time.”

Peter looks at his claws and says, “Do you need anyone killed? Stiles and I could help with that.”

“Don’t tell me that!” Derek exclaims, getting up from his seat and pacing. “No, I don’t need anyone killed. It’s just… frustrating, you know? It makes _me_ feel bad, not the person who’s saying, ‘I could suck…’ you know. It’s gross.”

“Okay. Okay. And that’s at the coffee shop and the grocery store?” He waits until Derek nods and says, “Sit, you’re making me dizzy. Okay, here’s what you say when anyone says anything remotely rude to you. You say, ‘You’re making me uncomfortable and you need to stop.’ That’s it – try it.”

Derek rolls his eyes, shaking his head at his uncle.

“Try it, Derek. It’s easy. You’re making me uncomfortable and you need to stop.”

“You’re making me uncomfortable and you need to stop. Do you think that’ll really stop someone?” he asks and dammit, Peter thinks he suddenly looks so young.

“You may need to repeat it a few times, but the person will stop. Now, pretend we’re at your coffee shop and I’m the rude barista.” Peter steps back, and pulls a couple of coffee cups in front of him on the counter. “You come in and order your undoubtedly over sweet and complicated drink.”

Derek shakes his head and snorts, but eventually says, “Hello, a large cinnamon dolce latte, please.”

“Umm, are you sure there isn’t anything else you’d like – like my phone number?” Peter asks, leaning over the counter.  When Derek says nothing, he prompts, “And you say…”

“You’re making me uncomfortable and you need to stop,” Derek mutters. “This is stupid, Peter, this won’t work.”

“Maybe not the first time you say it. When you tell a person they’re behaving badly, their first reaction will be to be defensive. So the person says, ‘Come on, I was just being nice.’ And then you say…”

“You’re making me uncomfortable and you need to stop,” Derek repeats, this time his voice is a little stronger.

“Geez, don’t make a big deal out of it, you’re not that special anyway.” Peter pauses and says, “Their next step will be to make it sound like it’s your problem. But what you say is firmly putting it on them – it’s their bad behavior and they need to cut it out. So you say…”

Derek grins and says, “You’re making me uncomfortable and you need to stop.”

“Of course, you won’t smile at them, you just repeat it. And by this time, someone else in the shop is going to notice and they’ll be pissed at the barista, too.”

“Really? Won’t it seem like I’m picking on some poor woman? Or guy?”

Peter shakes his head and says, “Not when they hear what she’s saying. So her last thing is going to be the ever popular ‘Hey sorry, I didn’t realize you’re a fag.’”

Derek’s eyes flash red and there’s a low growl from his chest.  “You’re making me uncomfortable and you need to stop.”

“Good, but no eyes and no growling in public. Unless you do intend to kill her, which you can’t do because a) people have seen you talking with her and b) you’re in public and c) you don’t have a place planned for the body.” Peter takes a breath, and pats Derek’s arm. “I’m 99% sure that the person will stop before they get to that stage. Now if it does get bad, either at the coffee place or the grocery store or whatever, try to get their name or license plate number and Stiles can find their address. We’ll be sure you and probably Chris are having dinner someplace public with Stiles’ father and we’ll take care of them. Not in public and we _do_ have a good place for the body.”

Derek’s eyes go wide and his eyebrows get extra judgey. “Peter! I’m going to assume you’re joking, right? You two don’t actually kill humans?”

“Oh, don’t worry, there were mitigating circumstances,” Peter replies, brushing off Derek’s concerns with a quick wave of his hand.

“Mitigating circumstances? Somehow I think even you couldn’t get away with that.” He pauses and says, “Do you ever think about going back to practicing law?”

“No,” Peter answers without a thought. “No, I’m quite content helping Stiles with his little potions business. He’s quite busy and it keeps me busy, too.”

They’re both silent for a moment, Derek studying his uncle. Peter’s scent has changed and Derek thinks if it were someone else, he’d say it’s worry or regret. But it’s Peter and that’s not a familiar scent on him.  He starts to wonder if he said too much to Peter -- maybe Peter does think there’s something wrong with him. “You okay?”

“Yes, I’m… No. No, it’s…” He pauses again, jaw clenching as he gathers his thoughts. “Derek, I’m sorry that we failed you when you were growing up – with Kate.”

Derek sits back, feeling stunned. Of all the things Peter might say, this is about the most unexpected. “You didn’t… there wasn’t anything for you to do.”

“No, we should have paid more attention. Your mother was busy with our mother and training Laura and looking after Cora and your little brother. Your father was busy with work, and so was I and busy with the new baby and… we left you on your own.”

“I was sixteen. I probably wouldn’t have listened to anything you had to say anyway,” Derek answers, feeling a blush on his ears. Even after all this time, he still doesn’t like talking about Kate and how easy it was to trick him.

“That’s kind of the point. We knew you were seeing someone and kept saying, ‘We have to meet this girl,’ and we never got to it. And especially with what you’re saying today…” Peter rubs the back of his neck, shaking his head. “I’m sorry you went through that and no one saw it. It was never your fault, Derek. You were a child and she was an adult and a murderer. I’ll do whatever I can to make sure no one touches you without your permission again.”

Derek’s mouth is so dry he almost can’t speak. “I thought you hated me. That you blamed me.”

Peter chuckles with a grin that has too many teeth. “Oh, I did at first. When I woke up and realized what happened. Mostly I hated Laura; she was the alpha and she should have stayed or taken me with you. You were in New York for six years and she never built a pack there? It still makes no sense to me, I know your mother taught her better than that.” He taps Derek’s arm and shrugs. “Stiles has lectured me to no end that it’s not helpful to live full of hate and how I can’t turn back time by killing most of northern California. He can be quite tiring.”

“Yeah, feeling sorry for you.” Derek moves into the kitchen and gets more water for each of them. “Actually, Chris told me a lot of the same things. That it was her fault and not mine.”

“Do you believe him?”

“I’m trying. It helps to hear it from you.” He sits and watches his uncle, thinking that they haven’t talked this much since… maybe never.

“Good. So about the not wanting to have sex. It’s not abnormal or weird, it’s asexual. Generally, it means not wanting to have sex or being sexually attracted to people. I’m certainly not an expert on it, but you could…” He pauses, shrugs, and continues, “You could talk to Boyd. He explained that he’s demi-sexual, which he says means he needs to be friends or comfortable with someone before he wants to have sex with them. Well, that’s how I understood Stiles’ explanation. Or I’m sure Stiles could send you some websites and probably put together a series of flow charts for you to review. Or a power point; he likes to do power points.”

“Maybe I’ll just look myself.” Derek exhales loudly, scratching a hand through his hair. “Boyd told you that or Stiles? I guess with Erica I always thought…”

“Understandable. They are very comfortable with each other now, and I understand it’s not a problem for them. But sometimes, he tells her that he doesn’t want sex, he just wants to be close to her. So they cuddle in bed or on the couch and it seems to work for both of them.” Peter smiles gently and says, “She’s really not quite the vamp people think she is. She’s a young woman overcompensating for her true lack of experience. And totally devoted to Boyd.”

They sit quietly for a minute, both thinking of packs and friends and what’s hidden in front of them.

Peter gives his phone a quick check and puts it back in his pocket. “So. We’ve talked about what you say to rude people and we’ve talked about being ace. And we touched on how you might want to have the pack over, because frankly, we miss having an alpha.” His grin is a little too sharp and Derek quickly thinks of Stiles. “Let’s talk about Chris and what you two need to talk about.”

“Or we could not,” Derek says, getting up and pacing around the dining room. “Nothing to say, really. I told you, we’re friends.”

“Now, Derek,” Peter says patiently and Derek remembers why his uncle is so annoying. Not to mention how he’s often right. “You could explain things to Chris. I do think it might make your interactions easier.”

Derek sits on the couch so his back is to Peter, who’s still sitting on a stool at the kitchen counter.  “So what do you suggest I say? Hey, Chris, just so you know, I might like you as more than a friend, but don’t worry, I don’t like sex, so you’re safe?”

“Something like that, but maybe with a little more finesse,” Peter moves to a chair in the living room, so they can talk, but not stare right at each other, hoping it’ll make Derek less antsy. Possibly. “Maybe something like… Chris, I think you know I like you a lot and my wolf is very comfortable with you. I hope you’re not uncomfortable if sometimes I want to be very close to you. I don’t mean it sexually, but being with you and being around your scent is very relaxing to me.”

Derek thinks for a moment and says, “My wolf? So basically blame it on my being a werewolf?”

“You wouldn’t believe what I can get away with with Stiles by pulling the wolf card.” Peter shrugs and grins. “Use what you have. I mean, be fair, don’t lie to your partner, but…”

“You truly are an evil genius,” Derek says, thinking about what Peter said. “Not that you really get anything past Stiles. And you should have recorded what you said, I’ll never remember it.”

“I’ll try to remember it and send you a text later.”

“Thanks. So you really think I should have the pack over?” Derek asks, changing the subject as soon as he can.  

Peter nods quickly. “Yes, I’m sure they want to spend more time with you.”

“Really?” he asks, looking like it’s a shocking idea.

“Derek, sometimes even _I_ come over because you’re my alpha and I feel a need to be around you. And believe me I hate myself for it and if you tell Stiles, I will not be happy and I’ll deny it. But yes, I’m sure they want to spend more time with you. You should get to know them, you have a pretty good pack,” Peter answers and his heartbeat stays steady.

“I didn’t think you want to be around me; you think I’m a shitty alpha.” Derek looks away, suddenly fascinated by the view from the living room window.

Peter sighs and says, “You weren’t raised to be an alpha and you’ve had to learn on your own. I give you advice when I can, but I wasn’t raised to be an alpha either. And let’s face it, other than showing you great ways to kill people, I wasn’t much of an example for you.”

“Neither was Laura. Peter, I look back and I know now we shouldn’t have left you, we should…”

“That’s history,” Peter says, holding up a hand and looking away himself. “I appreciate it, and that you’re not an alpha who would do that, but that’s the past. Apparently, we both have things we wished we’d done differently. Let’s talk about the pack you have now.”

Derek’s glad Peter gave him a pass, but part of him does want to be as honest with Peter as he’s been with him. But that’s later. “So invite them over and do what?”

“Pick a date and Stiles will organize it; meaning, he’ll tell Lydia and she’ll take over. People bring food, you supply drinks and everyone sits around and eats, maybe watches a movie. It’s not painful, I promise you’ll enjoy it.”

“Yeah, maybe,” Derek says, perking up. He does like his pack, even if he doesn’t really understand them. “Maybe I could barbeque sometime.”

“I’m sure they’d like that, meat is never turned down.”  Peter pauses and says, “You could invite Chris.”

Derek shakes his head and answers, “I don’t know. What if everyone asks questions like you do?”

“Use your alpha voice and tell them to fuck off. Then scent them a little and ignore them again.”

“That sounds like it would work with maybe half of them,” Derek says, grinning as he thinks of trying that with Malia, who doesn’t particularly like any of those things.

“I’ll tell Stiles to tell them to fuck off. Or, have Chris come over an hour or so before the pack’s supposed to be here and maybe that’ll explain why his scent is here.”

Derek looks around the room, thinking of where his betas could sit and what else he might need if the pack will be over occasionally. “Yeah, he’d do that. Thanks, you’ve been remarkably and suspiciously helpful today.”

“You caught me on an off day. I didn’t get much sleep last night,” Peter says, raising an eyebrow and smirking.

“You’re making me uncomfortable and you need to stop,” Derek says, grinning.

“My work here is done,” Peter says, reaching for Derek’s empty water bottle. “Next time you should have wine.”

Derek grabs his arm, running his hand up to Peter’s neck, giving him a gentle squeeze. “Thanks, and tell Stiles I’ll let him know about the day for pack night.”

Peter relaxes, tiling his head against Derek’s hand, “Yes, alpha,” he says, with a final smirk before he leaves.


End file.
